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Our BU finally arrived...Issues


AustnJPR

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Well our "new to us" 06' 23LSV arrived last night from Washington. So after work today we went through the tedious job of unwrapping her. Needless to say, my heart dropped when I saw the areas underneath the windshield on both the port and starboard side had been scuffed very badly by the shrink wrapping. I called the dealership and they are going to look at the pictures and get back with us. There were also several other issues that would have bothered me more but the gel coat problem made all the rest seem trivial. I know the boat is an 06 but we shopped for 6 months and paid top dollar for a low hour well maintained rig. I knew I was taking a risk in buying out of state and having it shipped. I felt I took every precaution like having it wrapped and shipped on a trailer. Sorry guess I'm just ranting now! :rant:

Guess the real question is, how to get the scuffs out? Wife says that the people who wrapped it should pay, I felt the dealership should have verified the wrapping and it is their issue. I did ask them if they had done this before and they assured me that the had tons of experience prepping and shipping across country.

The damage

2qin53r.jpg

The other side

30naey9.jpg

Before damage

2n6ugih.jpg

Edited by AustnJPR
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Unless they're deep, they may simply buff out with a little polishing compound. Have you tried?

Not implying the shipping co./dealer don't have an obligation to make it right but it could be a simple fix. Hard to really tell from the pics but a little polishing compound an orbital buffer can work miracles. The gel coat is reasonably thick so give it try.

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Unless they're deep, they may simply buff out with a little polishing compound. Have you tried?

Not implying the shipping co./dealer don't have an obligation to make it right but it could be a simple fix. Hard to really tell from the pics but a little polishing compound an orbital buffer can work miracles. The gel coat is reasonably thick so give it try.

I tried some cleaner/wax that I have in my auto cleaning arsenal with no joy. I am sure a more aggressive compound and an orbital will do it, but I have not tried. Unfortunately it will have to wait until after work tomorrow to go pick up a buffer and polish or rubbing compound. I'm sure I'm just throwing a tantrum and being pissy that my 48K plus 2K shipping cash paid for boat arrived in less than expected condition. As someone much wiser than myself once said... "Life Happens." :crazy:

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martinarcher

You sure they are scratches? When I got my boat off the tailer from CA the shrink wrap left similar marks. They weren't scratches, but just plastic "smudge" marks. I just cleaned and waxed the boat and it was good to go.

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Unless they're deep, they may simply buff out with a little polishing compound. Have you tried?

Not implying the shipping co./dealer don't have an obligation to make it right but it could be a simple fix. Hard to really tell from the pics but a little polishing compound an orbital buffer can work miracles. The gel coat is reasonably thick so give it try.

I'm thinking the same thing. However the dealer or shipping co should pay for a good detailing to get the marks off. It looked perfect before shipping should after as well IMHO.

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I tried some cleaner/wax that I have in my auto cleaning arsenal with no joy. I am sure a more aggressive compound and an orbital will do it, but I have not tried. Unfortunately it will have to wait until after work tomorrow to go pick up a buffer and polish or rubbing compound. I'm sure I'm just throwing a tantrum and being pissy that my 48K plus 2K shipping cash paid for boat arrived in less than expected condition. As someone much wiser than myself once said... "Life Happens." :crazy:

Don't blame you for the tantrum. Not sure I could wait for the dealer to get to it. I'd end up out there with my stuff trying it first.

Start with as mild a polish/cleaner as you can find and keep the pressure light and speed moderate. Something "cleansing" about doing your own detail work and it's hugely rewarding when the finished product looks great (thought I've been too busy lately to do it).

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hand waxing is going to be tough to get any scuffs out so dont be dissapointed yet, you def need an orbital buffer and you will be amazed at what can be buffed out...

Also FYI, Harbor Frieght Tools has a sale on orbital buffers right now... its a 7" 10amp with the side handle, variable speed...regularly 59$ on sale with maintenence plan for $30. I bought one this weekend! Get that with an additional pack of 7" terry cloth bonnets, some good compound and those are sure to come right out...

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hand waxing is going to be tough to get any scuffs out so dont be dissapointed yet, you def need an orbital buffer and you will be amazed at what can be buffed out...

Also FYI, Harbor Frieght Tools has a sale on orbital buffers right now... its a 7" 10amp with the side handle, variable speed...regularly 59$ on sale with maintenence plan for $30. I bought one this weekend! Get that with an additional pack of 7" terry cloth bonnets, some good compound and those are sure to come right out...

Sucks to hear a bad experience. I know when I was buying my boat (drove 1200 miles to florida) the whole way down I was hoping it was in good shape.

If the scratches are not deep and just swirls, a medium cutting compound, followed by a fine, and finish polish would get it out with an orbital polisher with cutting/fine/polish pads.

Hard to tell from the pics.

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Thanks for the hope guys. I'm sure it will all get squared away. like I said just bummed about it. Also discovered the front facing tower lights don't work and the bow speakers make no noise. Sh!t like this gets on my nerves a bit when I repeatedly asked the dealer to verify functionality of all components.

Alas these are gripes for another day. This pic may show it a bit better, its this way on both sides and both corners.

5ed2qr.jpg

Edited by AustnJPR
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martinarcher

Man, that still doesn't look like scratches to me. Before you go wild with the polishing compound, pick up a bottle of acetone and try cleaning the gel coat off. I'm still thinking it looks like it should "clean" off and not buff off. Acetone is what you clean gel coat with (removes wax and any contaminants) before doing any gel coat work. Totally safe on the gel and will remove those marks if they are only plastic transfer from the shrink wrap.

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Man, that still doesn't look like scratches to me. Before you go wild with the polishing compound, pick up a bottle of acetone and try cleaning the gel coat off. I'm still thinking it looks like it should "clean" off and not buff off. Acetone is what you clean gel coat with (removes wax and any contaminants) before doing any gel coat work. Totally safe on the gel and will remove those marks if they are only plastic transfer from the shrink wrap.

I'll give it a go. Thanks for the tip.

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Man, that still doesn't look like scratches to me. Before you go wild with the polishing compound, pick up a bottle of acetone and try cleaning the gel coat off. I'm still thinking it looks like it should "clean" off and not buff off. Acetone is what you clean gel coat with (removes wax and any contaminants) before doing any gel coat work. Totally safe on the gel and will remove those marks if they are only plastic transfer from the shrink wrap.

:plus1:

The marks look like residue adhesive from the shrink wrap. I'd try something simple like windex and work up to something more serious, like goof-off adhesive remover. Then wash, dry and wax.

-- Mike

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:plus1:

The marks look like residue adhesive from the shrink wrap. I'd try something simple like windex and work up to something more serious, like goof-off adhesive remover. Then wash, dry and wax.

-- Mike

Acetone just left a cloudy white spot. Goo Gone did nothing. Going to get a buffer at lunch tomorrow and head to West Marine to see what they have on the shelf.

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Glad to see you are pro active and going to work yourself on it. On the other hand, the dealership did indicate an expectation for the delivered condition of the boat. My advice would be prior to you getting too involved, find a good detail shop and have them provide a cost estimate and while you are at it, glean what steps they would be taking to correct the problem. That way you have some "professional" evidence / cost quote to use as barter/negotiation with the dealership on helping you out. It will also show them you are pro active. In the meantime, you can continue down your current path, along with coming up with the list of issues. Good luck, sharp boat.

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Acetone just left a cloudy white spot. Goo Gone did nothing. Going to get a buffer at lunch tomorrow and head to West Marine to see what they have on the shelf.

Try windex or another water based cleanser. goo gone and acetone are both petroulem based, it may still just clean off. A call the the dealer to see what they use to clean new boats may be a good call as well.

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hand waxing is going to be tough to get any scuffs out so dont be dissapointed yet, you def need an orbital buffer and you will be amazed at what can be buffed out...

Also FYI, Harbor Frieght Tools has a sale on orbital buffers right now... its a 7" 10amp with the side handle, variable speed...regularly 59$ on sale with maintenence plan for $30. I bought one this weekend! Get that with an additional pack of 7" terry cloth bonnets, some good compound and those are sure to come right out...

I bought that exact tool in '08 when I redid my boat, it is a solid tool. Buy this before going to West Marine.

Edit: but be careful with buffers. Too much speed = too much heat = gel coat problems. Gotta go easy.

Glad to see you are pro active and going to work yourself on it. On the other hand, the dealership did indicate an expectation for the delivered condition of the boat. My advice would be prior to you getting too involved, find a good detail shop and have them provide a cost estimate and while you are at it, glean what steps they would be taking to correct the problem. That way you have some "professional" evidence / cost quote to use as barter/negotiation with the dealership on helping you out. It will also show them you are pro active. In the meantime, you can continue down your current path, along with coming up with the list of issues. Good luck, sharp boat.

I agree with this, have a professional opinion made first. If nothing else you can get store credit for something, you know you will need something at some point.

Bummer on finding other problems. The good news on the gel is that will definitely come out clean and perfect, no worries there.

Edited by Michigan boarder
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If you can't really feel the scratches they will come out. Gel coat is way easier than paint to deal with scratches.

If you arranged for the shipper I suspect you will need to deal with the shipping issues with the shipper not the dealer. If the dealer arranged for the shipper it should be the dealers responsibility to make it right and they should deal with the shipper.

I went with the harbour freight buffer and fixed alot of scratches in my old boat with it. Some of them were deep enough I started with sand paper (wet sanding) but was able to get it to where you couldn't tell there was ever a problem with a little work. I use the circular buffer vs. the orbital one. I also got the one that you can adjust the RPM with a couple of buttons vs. variable speed based on the trigger. The buffer does a lot more than you can do by hand.

That really sucks to deal with these things when you are so excited about the new boat. I hope it ends up easy to fix to you can start enjoying it. In a few weeks you won't even remember this.

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Update: I tried some 3M rubbing compound on an orbital buffer followed by 3M Finesse It II... This was followed by Meguiar's flagship marine wax.

This process was tested on a small area and while it looks ton's better, it is still not what it should be.

I got in touch with my local BU dealer and they referred me to a gel coat repair/restoration guy near my home. Gel Coat Jim. So I took the day off today and took it in for them to have a look. They put the boat up on a lift and proceeded to deflate my boat buying balloon faster than I ever thought possible. On top of the "gouges" caused by the shrink wrap they pointed out previous gel work that was performed and also a spider crack on the starboard side about mid ship that was the size of a quarter or so. There also appeared to be traces of dried silicone on the bottom of the boat that we are not quite sure of the source yet. To top it all off, for the areas along the sides to be repaired the decals will have to be removed and replaced. I was a bit shocked at the price for 06' replacement decals! :( The folks at Malibu have been very helpful in getting factory color gel and replacement decals. (which they still had)

Anyway the story has a lot more to it, as far as dealing with the dealer that we purchased the boat from. After all the pics and documentation comes back I will update again. Just as a tid bit though, someone at the dealership went so far as to imply that my shipper may have damaged the boat and had gel work done! I'm thinking that Wayne with Autokraft would not think that funny. They insist that there were no signs of any previous gel work when the boat left. The guy here says it's old work and not very good work at that... Grab the popcorn and stay tuned because I'm learning boat buying lessons at a break neck pace! :cry:

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